News:

Reading the forum on your cell phone? There's an easier way. We've enabled a Tapatalk app that makes browsing the forum a whole lot easier. Check it out in the iPhone or Android store if you don't own it already.

As a so. nh climber, most exciting, yes thanx todd and wondered what mr. swain has been up to?, I am a friend of Base, he has has old stories of you rating some of the first climbs in pawtuckaway a few years ago

bags: durrell mtn. is this aka rattlesnake mtn or dunbarton crag?, mostly sport routes 5.9 up except for one 5.7?, yes should be included todd

liked to have thought i knew most local s. nh places but a couple of those I never heard of, todd, i have at least 2 ice climbing areas not in your list i will email you about

yes too bad, at least 3 of those places listed are off limits as far as i know and well...(no further comment)

i learned to climb on joe english, had a friend in military who actually got us "in" with official permission one day this past summer and we climbed all day, was great, first time in 7 or 8 years there, then went again the next weekend and they(joe english sits on air force sattelite tracking station) said it was a mistake letting us in previous weekend and despite calls to the base commander from my friend, it was no go, so we gave up but for historical value, i'd love to see the climbs and ratings there I know by word of mouth

Great to hear a new guide is in the works. I cut my teeth on these crags with a worn out, green-covered guide of Todd's as a bible. I can't give away all the secrets but there a few others that could make the list. Purgatory Falls and Pulpit Rock are both fun ice/mixed spots that are part of town-owned land preserves. Sensitivity to site aesthetics and interactions with nonclimbers is key but to date it hasn't been a problem that I know of. Both have fun climbing at different grades though neither is known for its height. Nonetheless they're very cool features on public land.

Durell Mtn. is a set of 5 or 6 small crags located in a wooded valley on the town line between Gilford and Gilmanton on the western edge of the Belknap Range. There are quite a few bolted sport climbs of all grades including some that are pretty difficult and some of quite good quality. I believe the land is privately owned- if not in its entirety, then at least partially. I do not know the development history, but have enjoyed climbing there a half dozen times. My apologies in advance if I am encroaching on some sensitive access issue.

Goffstown is an entirely different area, it is a beautiful compact white conglomerate cliff in an open forest setting, pretty much plumb along its entire length, the climbing is real technical with top rope problems and some bolted lines. I heard that Base was involved in its development. It probably has another name.

So- I don't know much about these two fun areas, but have climbed there and would like to know more about the history, access, and ratings.

Durrel has some great climbs. There was some activity in the past by locals who weren't too experienced putting up routes (nasty bizarre anchors etc), then , a few years ago, David Quinn and his then GF and Brady Libby developed it some more, with some fine sport and mixed routes up to 5.12 and possibly a 13. Ward and Chris Smith and I also put up a few routes too. When we were putting up routes the access seemed fine, but since, there has been some housing developement and no traspassing signs along where we used to park, so access would have to be reassertained. The rock is somewhat similar to Rumney. One of the lower crags is very steep with corners and aretes. The main cliff has some great routes. I put up a 12c called Fat and Happy near the right side of the main face and there is another 12 to the left of it, that i think Dave got the first assent of. One or 2 over left is a 5.11 by Brady that rivals the length and quality of Black Mamba at Rumney. Then a couple interesting 10s and a short steep project I started to bolt. I'm not sure if anybody finished it. The other walls have some interesting faces and corners mostly put up by the original developers and Dave Quinn and Co. Some of the old routes were cleaned and retroed some with permission.

For more information, I would look up Brady Libby, as he lives near the area and knows the history. It is a good little area with some sweet lines on a nice south facing hillside. It would be very worth figuring out and securing access. The only blight I noticed were a few drinking, atv riding, tree shooting locals who would occasionally roar up, run around and face plant onto stumps. Once you go up the hill a bit that seemed to thin out, though we did haul out a bunch of bags of trash out from below the main cliff.

This is a good area that, last i saw, still had potential for more new routes

« Last Edit: January 05, 2010, 04:50:25 PM by M_Sprague »

Logged

"Do not go where the path may lead, go instead where there is not a path and leave a trail."

the goffstown cliff i first heard of as dunbarton crag and then later rattlesnake mtn (not a mtn.) yes base and pal put up the first climbs , i'll ask him next time i see him what he calls it, now there are new harder 5.12 and harder climbs on overhanging leftside (met fella involved w/that once, can't remember name), too much for me! but way interesting unique rock in that left section and yes beautiful white quartzy climbs elsewhere nice 5.9s and 5.10s, short but sweet, far as i know is still legal to climb there, no no tresspasing signs i saw there last time out this past summer

have a homemade printout guide to hewes hill and still never been there, is only 15 minutes more to franconia notch then keene but i should check it out someday